On April 2, 2025, President Donald Trump declared “Liberation Day,” announcing comprehensive tariffs aimed at restructuring U.S. trade policies and invigorating domestic manufacturing.
The measures include a universal 10% tariff on all imports, with additional “reciprocal” tariffs targeting specific countries based on their trade practices.
At approximately 08:17 UTC the administration said that they would impose a blanket 10% tariff on all imports.
Markets reacted immediately. At 08:27 UTC, Trump stated that the new tariffs would be set at “reciprocal rates,” but only half of what the U.S. is currently charged by other nations.
Within minutes, S&P 500 futures plummeted 2%. At 08:30 UTC, as Trump held up a poster with specific tariff rates for over 50 countries, equity futures accelerated their decline to 3%, wiping out $1.3 trillion in market capitalization in less than five minutes.
Amid the turmoil in traditional markets, Bitcoin first surged, reaching a peak of approximately $88,700 by 08:18 UTC, before sharply reversing. According to Binance trading data, BTC/USDT fell over 3% in less than 20 minutes, bottoming at around $85,300 by 08:40 UTC.
The full list of reciprocal tariff rates included elevated levies on imports from major trading partners like China (34%), the European Union (20%), Japan (24%), and South Korea (25%), raising fears of renewed global trade tensions.
The announcement also impacted the cryptocurrency market, which has recently shown increased sensitivity to geopolitical and macroeconomic shifts.
Bitcoin has been trading at elevated levels following recent bullish momentum from institutional adoption and the U.S. administration’s strategic Bitcoin reserve plans. However, the sudden return of protectionist economic policies sent risk assets into retreat.
As of 20:43 UTC, Bitcoin was trading at $85,356, down 3.8% from its intraday high.
